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15 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 20 JULY 2022 EUROPE Germany approaches record temperatures Germany's weather service (DWD) said Tuesday that parts of the country's west could crack the 40 C mark, putting the all-time temperature record of 41.2 o C re- corded in 2019 within reach. The DWD said the extreme heat is centered on the West- ern states of Saarland, Rhine- land-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia, especially including low-lying areas on the Rhine and Ruhr rivers. Areas of Germany have also raised forest fire alert levels. In 10 of Germany's 16 states, pre- dominately in the south, west and northeast, the highest of five alert stages has been issued. The Bavarian forestry minister has called on the public to be especially careful when walking through forests, warning that even a single cigarette butt can ignite an inferno. How is the heat affecting other European regions? Further south in Spain, wild- fires in the northwestern Zam- ora province have claimed two lives. The body of a 69-year-old sheep farmer was found Mon- day in the same area where a 62-year-old firefighter had died Sunday. On Tuesday, the EFE news agency reported that 5,800 peo- ple were ordered evacuated from 34 towns in Zamora, and eight roads in the region have been closed. Spain's El Pais newspaper re- ported Tuesday that wildfires have burned a total of over 60,000 hectares across the coun- try. Twenty out of the 30 fires in Spain remain uncontrolled. Belgium and Germany were among the countries expect- ing the heatwave to hit them in coming days. The EU said it was monitoring closely wildfires raging in south- ern member states on Monday, sending a firefighting plane to Slovenia over the weekend add- ing to recent deployments to France and Portugal. "We continue of course to monitor the situation during this unprecedented heatwave and will continue to mobilise sup- port as needed," spokesperson Balazs Ujvari told a briefing. The EU was also providing sat- ellite imagery to France, he add- ed. Separately, the Commission announced in a report that al- most half the territory of the bloc was currently at risk of drought. In Italy, where smaller fires have blazed in recent days,fore- casters expect temperatures above 40C in several regions in- coming days. Switzerland also suffered the effects of the heatwave. Axpo, the operator of the Beznau nu- clear plant, said it on Monday it was forced to reduce output so that it does not overheat the Aare river from which it draws its cooling water. The Swiss government issued a heat wave advisory, citing con- siderable danger across much of the country with temperatures in some parts reaching 36 o C (96.8F). A firefighter fights the flames surrounding Alcede village in the minicipality of Baiao in northern Portugal hottest-ever temperature